Musings on the changing world of fitness

It’s not a secret: we live in a completely different world to our grandparents and even our parents. Thoughts and beliefs have changed—and are still changing. Thinking of the world we could have in another 20 years’ time is almost mind-boggling. In this piece however, I am going to focus specifically on the changing world of fitness.

With a growing interest in exercise of all forms—I’m talking yoga on paddleboards and pole dancing to strengthen your core—millennials are brought up with a sounder knowledge of health, and the role of a good diet and strong fitness regime—and gyms are booming.

When I ask my mum about fitness as a child or a teenager, she struggles to recall a single gym, apart from the main hall at school. Now, however, not only is there a gym a stone’s throw from wherever you are, you can choose from ones that have an in-house DJ, exposed brick, hundreds of different classes, and equipment that you didn’t even know existed.

Not only that, but long gone are the days of men only weight rooms, as increasing numbers of women squat and lift—even heavier than men.

This is heavily reflected in women’s body goals changing. I remember as a little girl in the 90s, my sister and her friends wanted to be ‘skinny,’ and our screens were filled with women promoting a skinny body image (flashing back to the OC, Sex & the City and 90210). Today, however, women want to be fit: from celebrities showing off their naked sculpted body in Women’s Health; all over our social media; to the Victoria Secret Catwalk Show now putting women with a tight bum and a sculpted stomach on stage.

Don’t get me wrong, this still promotes a tough body image as this is usually achieved with a gruelling fitness regime and very clean diet, but at least we’re promoting fitness over starvation.

This concern can even now be noted on fashion catwalks. Notorious for painfully thin women, laws for catwalk models are now coming into place. You won’t necessarily see them at the squat rack, but the aim is to stop the normalisation of this skinny body image, as many of these women starve themselves to get to this point. This might be an area that changes slowly, but responsibility needs to be taken and regulations implemented. France have set an excellent example after a new law was introduced banning those to be considered excessively thin, by ensuring Fashion models provide medical certification proving they are healthy enough to work.

It is interesting to look over the years and to see how women’s body image has changed. When I tell my grandma I am working out to make my bum look bigger, her face is a picture. She is horrified and continuously asks me ‘why’ I would want a bigger bum. This is the same with my mum. With the role models of their time having a very different body shape, you can see how this idea would be alien to them. To be honest, it’s a bit alien to me, but shows the influence that influencers have on us—even if it is subconsciously.

Ultimately, I think the education of a healthy lifestyle—combined with diversity to understand every body shape is different—is key. I have come to learn this, and understand it is good to feel empowered by others, but important to have your own goals. I have hips, so I’m never going to have the body shape of a petite girl—but that’s okay. You are you, so go do you!